Improvement in life-preservers



PATENT OFFICE.

JAMES KNIGHT, OF NEW' YORK, N. Y.

IMPROVEMENT IN LIFE-PRESERVERS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 17,434, dated June 2, 1857.

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, JAMES KNIGHT, of the city, county, and State of New York, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Life-Preservers; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full and exact description.

My improvement consists in adding to the life-preserver usually worn round the body, and intended to float the person upon the surface of the water, a support for the head and a shield to the mouth and nostrils, thus preventing the face from falling upon the water when the person is exhausted from fatigue in holding the head up, and a preventive to bei ug suftocated by the waves.v

To enable others to make and use my improvement, the following is a description of its construction and operation.

It is only necessary to form a sheath upon any of the ordinary life-preservers that are intended to beworn round `the body, this sheath to be about two and a half inches wide by about twelve long, and when the lifepreserver is on the body the sheath must be parallel to the breast-bone and the'upper end lett open. It is then necessary to shape'a piece of wood or other light material to tit in the sheath, and long enough'to extend to the chin of a person when Vthe -head is thrown back, as in the act of swimming, allowing for adaptation. On one end of this piece of wood or other light material just described fit and fasten a portion of cork, shaping it so as to let the chin rest easily upon it when the head is thrown back, as in the act of swimming. To the front of this piece of cork or other light material for the chin to rest upon (and which ought to be about three and a half inches wide) shape and fasten apiece of wire, so that when the chin is resting upon the cork this wire will touch the bridge of the nose about halt an inch below the eyes, (or that it can be so adj usted.) From this point where the wire touches the nose fasten the end of a similar piece of wire, curving it downward and backward to be fastened to the center of the base of the block upon which the chin rests. This forms a frame to be covered on the under side with muslin or other similar material to within or about one inch of the cork, so as to allow the water to flow out readily that may pass down over the face. The whole is much improved by being covered by a solution of gum-shellac or any good varnish.

Now what I claim as inventor of is The construction of the supporter to sustain the head in the position assumed by persons when swimming, thus relieving the wearer from muscular etfort, and attached to this supporter a shield to protect the mouth and nostrils from the violence of the waves, and this supporter and shield fitted to the ordinary life-preservers as worn round the body by having attached to them sheaths, as represented in my drawings, (see letter A,) one of them litted with a sheath to admit the stem of the supporter for adjustment to the wearer, the Whole when combined constituting my improvement.

JAMES KNIGHT. Titnessesz GEO. H. HANSELL,

A. F. WARBURTON. 

